BY CAILIN BURKE 

When Smartling, a translation software company, asked us to show our own version of multicultural style, we were so excited because it’s the perfect challenge for us! As our mom is from the Philippines, we have some items from there and throughout our grandma’s travels with the Peace Corps, we have gotten clothes from South and Central America as well. When looking through our closets we discovered we actually have a ton of items from different countries! We try to incorporate these articles into our outfits as often as possible and Smartling wanted us to share them with you guys! As Smartling helps companies translate website content into many languages, it was a perfect fit! So Tara and I dug through our wardrobes to find outfits inspired by the trends in different countries.

Lucky enough, I found a scarf that my mom had bought when she was a teenager in the Philippines. I took it from her of course, because just look at the colors! It’s so loud, fun and definitely has some Spanish influences, as Spain colonized there. Since it is so bright and bold, I decided to have the rest of my outfit be plain black. That way the focus is really on the scarf. I also added some more cultural flare as I paired the outfit with a Guatemalan bag from my grandma. Finally I threw on a few Pura Vida bracelets, made in Costa Rica, and my look was all set!

Tara had a look with South/Central American influences as well and we were able to find a stucco building to take pictures in front of that made the look even more Spanish-inspired! Tara’s skirt was another one of our grandma’s finds, but this time from Peru. She paired it with a cream shirt and a bird necklace that matched the birds in the skirt. Her bird necklace came from an auction that our parents attended. You can find the best vintage costume jewelry at auctions for a pretty good deal! It is also a good way to get jewelry made in different countries. Some of the coolest jewelry we’ve found from auctions were really intricate Native American handmade beaded necklaces.

Different cultures can really shine through accessories and clothing. Next time you go shopping think of buying something handmade in another country or an item that is representative of another. It may inspire you to learn more about a different culture and you may even feel the need to travel across the world to experience it for yourself!